Penny's Big Breakaway by the Sonic Mania devs looks awesome

Penny's Big Breakaway is an all-new 3D platformer from the developers of Sonic Mania, and it's looking pretty brilliant.

Announced during the June 2023 Nintendo Direct, Penny's Big Breakaway is the debut title from Evening Star, a studio featuring much of the talent that worked on Sonic Mania, which we consider to be one of the best Sonic games ever made.

Its Nintendo Direct appearance revealed an 'Early 2024' release for Nintendo Switch. However, Penny's Big Breakaway is a multiplatform title that's also coming to PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and Steam.

Penny's Big Breakaway stars the titular character and the self-explanatory Yo-Yo, who appears to be just that at first glance. Penny can also transform Yo-Yo into several different objects for traversal, including a hook that lets her swing in mid-air, and a giant rolling ball.

Penny's Big Breakaway looks like it'll be an absolute blast for platforming fans. Much like other indie platformers such as A Hat in Time, there's an emphasis on getting through its brightly-colored stages as quickly and efficiently as possible by utilizing Yo-Yo's various abilities. Speedrunners are well-catered for, too, with a Time Attack mode that features online leaderboards.

I'm in awe of the art style in Penny's Big Breakaway, too. The use of bold pastel colors is reminiscent of the devs' work on Sonic Mania, and it's brimming with 90s Sega Saturn platformer vibes. It was certainly a standout title in an already impressive Nintendo Direct showcase that went big on platformers thanks to an abundance of new Mario games.

While Penny's Big Breakaway doesn't have an exact release date as of yet, it's certainly one of the most exciting upcoming games to keep an eye on for next year. Before then, Super Mario Bros. Wonder looks like it'll provide series fans with even more creative platforming action in 2023.